Let Your Words Be Purrs Instead of Hisses
by SkywardGratis
Summary: HPFC Forum Wide Challenge. A Collection of One-shots.
1. Revolution

_House: Gryffindor_

_Prompt: 'well'_

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Revolution

Lucius Malfoy was ill; and no matter how much he wished to change that fact, it was simply impossible. The inevitable was coming; he was going to die. Narcissa stood in the doorway to the master bedroom watching her ailing husband struggle across the room from the bed towards the en-suite. She knew, deep down, that she should be over there helping him but there was something, some personal factor, that was holding her back. Watching him struggle somehow made her feel that little bit better about herself. In a world of her own she failed to notice his eyes becoming fixated on her; Lucius stood leaning against the ancient chest of drawers, a look of anger present on his weary face.

"Stood there like you have the right to an opinion, you'd do well to remember just whose house this is!" Narcissa stared at him unblinking, shock briefly obvious on her face. When she spoke in response her voice held a spiteful tone Lucius was not at all used to hearing.

"And you'd do well to remember who the person responsible for looking after you is…I don't see anyone else queuing up to take over my job, do you?" She swept from the room, her cloak floating gently behind her, with a look of utter anger on her face. The door slammed shut behind her with such a force that the whole room shook and Lucius let out an exasperated sigh. She had always had a fiery temper.

Narcissa let the front door shut behind her as she made her way towards the gates of Malfoy Manor. Focusing on the image of Diagon Alley in her head, Narcissa felt the air around her move and with a faint pop she apparated. Carefully correcting her balance she took in her surroundings and quickly decided on a destination. When she had left the manor she hadn't really had much of a plan in mind but now a drink seemed a likely comfort. The Leaky Cauldron was as busy as normal but she still managed to slip inside unnoticed. Ordering a bottle of firewhisky from the slightly shocked bartender, she took a seat in the far corner of the room, the hood over her head obscuring her face from the other patrons. She downed the first glass in an instant only for it to be followed by a second as the amber liquid slowly sparked its way to her stomach and through her veins. The sound of breaking glass to her right caught the blonde's attention and Narcissa glanced out from behind the hood. There her eyes briefly met with those of someone who had once been vaguely familiar to her. The brown-haired woman did her best to disguise her shock but it was obvious that she had not been expecting to see her and Narcissa couldn't help but smile. Everyone seemed to be expecting her to stay hidden away like Lucius had; at least that was what the outside world thought. If only they knew.

"Care to join me? You look like you could use a glass of this as well," Narcissa held the bottle towards the younger woman and waited. Her response was a tentative nod of the head in the direction of the backrooms of the public house. Narcissa paused, briefly wondering what was happening but somehow, somewhere within, her heart overruled her head and she followed in her footsteps. Hermione was sat at a small wooden table, set far back behind the bar, an empty glass waiting in her hand. Narcissa sunk into the seat opposite and splashed a liberal amount of the amber liquid into the glass. As she poured herself a glass she noticed that Hermione had emptied her own and held it out expectantly.

"Steady on" Narcissa laughed lightly; this was a whole new side to Potter's best friend. Hermione simply grabbed the bottle and grunted in response,

"Bad day."

"I can see that." Narcissa replied as she observed her companion. The years hadn't really aged her much at all she noted; the hazel brown eyes still held the same quest for knowledge that they always had.

"You?" It took a few seconds for her to register the question and formulate a response

"Lucius and I…argued I suppose you could call it that." Hermione nodded and suppressed any more questions. It wasn't her place to ask them; and besides… it was strange enough sat drinking and talking with her old enemy's mother in the first place. Narcissa sighed and stared around the small room; The pub itself really hadn't changed all that much since she had been in here as a student at Hogwarts all those years ago.

"He's not a well man… and I know I should be worried and playing the ever convincing wife but I can't… I can't bring myself to do it… I just don't care enough." Hermione wasn't sure what to say in reply, the Narcissa Malfoy that sat in front of her; that spoke with such a cold tone to her voice was nothing like the woman she remembered from her school days. This Narcissa was merely a shell of her former self and in all honesty that was the scariest thing of all.


	2. Shattered

House: Gryffindor

Challenge: Write about two characters; one must be from your own house.

Characters: Molly Weasley; Arthur Weasley

Also written for 'The Drabble Challenge' as posted in that collection and partially for the 27th June Daily Mod's prompt.

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Shattered

"You're an inadequate father, a stupid man and a disgrace to your profession!"

Her voice echoed throughout the room and before she realised what she was doing, her hand had reached out and grabbed the closest thing to her; a glass bowl. Molly Weasley held her breath as she watched the glass slip from her hand and make a slow motion movement across the room. She saw her husband reach out to stop its path but it was too late. The glass bowl flew at him with increasing speed and it was soon heading towards to the tiled floor. As it hit the ground the bowl shattered into millions of fragmented pieces of glass. Molly stared across the room, the anger obvious in her face as it slowly changed to match the colour of her hair; Arthur stood wide-eyed; shock reigning over his face. The silence within the room was broken as Arthur leapt backwards in order to avoid the contents of the shattered bowl and Molly let out an angry sigh. Both Weasley's looked at each other and Arthur opened his mouth as if to speak but no words came out. There was nothing left to be said.

The sound of four sets of feet on the floor above alerted them both to the incoming arrival of members of their family. A simple flick of her wrist saw the shards of glass collected up and they slowly began to piece themselves back together. With a second arm movement the mess on the floor vanished. Molly replaced the now repaired bowl on the side just as the door swung open and Fred and George entered the kitchen followed by their younger siblings Ron and Ginny. Molly watched as Arthur turned and stepped out of the room, disappointment and sadness written across his face. Looking away she glanced at the children as they settled down for dinner and smiled proudly; they could always bring a smile to her face even when it felt like the very last thing she wanted to do at that moment in time.

* * *

Letting the door close behind him Arthur sought refuge outside the hostile environment that was the house, silently shutting himself away in the potting shed he had only recently built. Molly's words still echoed inside his head; he really had done it this time. He knew she didn't like him bringing them home but it was what he did; and he enjoyed it. He'd only meant for it to be a bit of extra work for him to do; how was he to know that it could cause that much damage? It was a tiny hole anyway; and the effect was interesting enough.

* * *

Molly handed out the plates; the food following shortly as they settled down to eat. Tucking into the meal everyone talked amongst themselves when suddenly Fred looked at the head of the table and noted the absence of their father.

"Where's Dad? I thought I heard him come in?" Molly looked up from her plate and sighed; she had hoped no one would notice. Her voice shook with anger as she replied,

"Your father, Merlin knows what goes on in that head of his, has only gone and brought home another muggle artefact from work!" Everyone around the table glanced at each other; It was becoming a regular occurrence now.

"What did this one do?" Ron muttered, his words muffled by the food in his mouth. Ginny shoved him to the side,

"You're such a pig Ron!" Everyone laughed except Molly; She opened her mouth to answer his question around the same time that George squinted at the wall above the sink.

"Mum, why is there… a hole in the wall?"


	3. Time is a Wonderful Thing

Forum Wide Competition: Week Three

Challenge: Prompt Table Seven: **Late**, **and you?,** maybe then, **certain**, **looking**, **set**, **table. **(I've used the ones in bold)

Disclaimer: None of the characters belong to me :(

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Time is a Wonderful Thing

The sun set late that night; disappearing beneath the horizon not long after midnight. Hermione had been sat there since lunchtime, her eyes glazed over tears steadily dripping down her cheeks, looking out over muggle London. She watched as people went about their business and the sun's progression across the sky; it was the one thing she could be one hundred percent certain about at the moment in time if nothing else. The sound of the door opening by a couple of inches caught her attention. She stared wildly around the room certain she had felt the presence of another person, sighing she assumed it must have been the wind blowing. Hermione turned back to the window, her eyes once again becoming focused on the street below. She had come to The Leaky Cauldron late the previous night; sat at a table with a bottle of firewhisky and her own thoughts for company. People came and went; walking past her on their way home, giving her barely a glance. As the clock struck midnight she paid and rented one of the upstairs rooms. Climbing the stairs to her room she collapsed on the bed; hot tears burning their way down her face. She fell into a fitful sleep and it was only as the sunlight filtered in through the curtains that Hermione slowly stirred. She moved from the bed to the window ledge not long after she awoke and that was where she remained for the rest of the day.

* * *

It had taken Narcissa all of that morning to locate her; she'd tried everywhere she could think of. In the end she had decided on a break and gone to get herself a drink. The Leaky Cauldron was nearly empty; unusual for that time in the afternoon Narcissa thought but in the end she didn't mind. Ordering herself a drink she sat at the end of the bar, hood pulled up in order to obscure her from the rest of the patrons. It had only been when she caught sight of food being taken upstairs that she realised; this was exactly where Hermione would have sought refuge. Draining her glass she left it abandoned on side and slipped up the stairs. The door to one of the rooms was slightly ajar and she waited until she was certain that there was no one around before pushing it open just that little bit further. From her position in the doorway she could see Hermione sat in the window, her hair half-covering her face. It was the sound of the slight movement of the door that caught her attention and Narcissa had to stifle her shock as she caught sight of the younger woman's face. Her eyes were red rimmed, simply slits in her face and tears were still leaking down her cheeks. Red blotches looked almost permanent on her once pale cheeks and Narcissa choked; her heart ripping itself apart even more than she had thought possible. She watched as the younger girl turned back to face the window, before pushing the door open far enough to make her way into the room. She was sure she saw Hermione shiver as she focused on her but resisted the urge to approach her from behind.

"I never thought I'd find you here," Narcissa watched as Hermione jumped at the sound of her voice and spun round to face her. The shock at her presence abated quickly and the younger woman replied in barely more than a whisper,

"And you" Hermione managed a weak smile as the older woman laughed lightly. Narcissa took a step forward, only to pause as she saw Hermione shuffle backwards towards the window.

"Neither did I" the two women stared at each other; both trying to read the others thoughts. Narcissa was the first to break eye contact, sighing she took a seat on the edge of the bed. Hermione stared at her for a second longer, before turning back to the window.

"Why? Why did you do it?" Hermione's voice came across as sounding nothing like her usual self but still Narcissa had no idea what to say. They stared at each other for what felt like an eternity before Narcissa cleared her throat.

"I... I had to, for Draco," Hermione laughed sadly; that was always her excuse. _She had to do it for her son. _Standing Hermione shook her head,

"This can't go on forever Narcissa, it's time to make a choice," Hermione gathered her travelling cloak and picked up her wand, pushing it into her sleeve. She paused at the doorway and murmured briefly "I'm sorry," before Narcissa realised what was happening Hermione had apparated with a faint pop. Staring at the spot where she had last seen the younger woman, Narcissa's eyes closed briefly before she too stood and apparated. There was no point staying there, Hermione wouldn't come back.

Narcissa wasn't able to make a choice yet, her family still needed her, and Hermione knew that. What Narcissa knew though, was that it wasn't fair of her to expect Hermione to wait forever. She just needed more time.


	4. The Perfect Contrast

House: Gryffindor

Challenge: Write about a given character in a romantic relationship from a different house.

A/N: I've just realised that this story might not fit the challenge's requirements because we're not given the houses for either of the two characters but I'm going to submit it anyway. This isn't anywhere near a good piece of work but this week has been hectic so I'm submitting it as it is.

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The Perfect Contrast

Teddy Lupin stared across the kitchen table, his eyes focused on the blond haired girl sat just down from him. She was having an animated discussion with Charlie about his job working with the dragons. Teddy found himself unable to drag his eyes away from her, even when he attempted to direct his attention into the conversation he was meant to be having with Ron but it just wasn't working. Victoire just seemed to keep capturing his attention. He watched as she moved her hands fluently as she spoke and he couldn't help but smile at the movements. He redirected his gaze back to Ron just as Victoire looked in his direction. He glanced up and smiled at her; she smiled back and waved her left hand at him slightly. The light glinted off the silver ring on her finger and he chuckled slightly. She wasn't exactly being discreet about the engagement ring sitting comfortably on her finger. She smiled at him before turning back to her conversation with Charlie.

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Later that same night Teddy found himself sneaking down The Burrow's narrow staircase, watching his steps in order to avoid the creaking bits of floorboard. Reaching the ground floor he walked over to the living room door and knocked lightly. The door swung open [to reveal] a blonde haired Victoire in a pale pink dressing gown. She pulled him inside the room and jumped up into his arms. He hugged her tightly as they sat down on the sofa. Kissing her lightly on the nose he smiled warmly. The light glinted off the ring on her finger just as it had that same afternoon and Teddy ran his fingers quickly over it. It really was the perfect contrast between the pair of them. A thin silver band with a single red stone.


	5. Accuracy

House: Gryffindor

Challenge 5: Write about a character from a house you haven't already written about in challenge 2 or 4.

Character: Narcissa Malfoy-Black. (Slytherin)

Inspiration: 'Time is not an accurate measure of emotion.'

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Accuracy

Narcissa sat beside the softly flowing water fountain, her long blonde hair flying around in the strong breeze. The sun was still high in the light blue sky and she couldn't help but shield her eyes with a small, pale white hand. The breeze continued to whip around her body and she shivered as it sent the water from the fountain splattering across her back. The water seeped through her white shirt and Narcissa stepped away from the fountain, her body racked with shivers. Walking back towards the manor she pushed open the door and entered the house, warmth surrounding her chilled body. Pulling on a jacket she made her way through the house, offering the occupier of the kitchen a small, weakened smile.

The brown haired girl turned at the sound of her entrance and smiled warmly.

"Would you like a drink?" Narcissa nodded slightly and accepted the proffered glass of pumpkin juice. She sat down at the old oak table and sipped at her drink. Her blue eyes focused on the back of the other woman's head.

"Why are you behaving like this?" The soft voice startled Narcissa from her own thoughts and she blinked rapidly. "Why can't you accept me as I am? Cissy, I love you... Just accept that fact." Narcissa sighed and drained her glass before placing it back on the kitchen counter. She shook her head slightly and turned to face the open window.

"Hermione... I..." She stumbled over her words and sighed again. She didn't know how to say what was really bothering her. In her head it all made perfect sense, but she couldn't seem to put it into words.

Her and Lucius had never had the perfect relationship, she know that but it seemed to be impacting on her mindset at the moment in time. They had been together for many years but deep down she know that no amount of time together would have changed how she felt about him. Lucius had been an evil minded boy when she first met him and the years had done nothing to change that part of him. She didn't love him now, just like she hadn't done when they first got married.

With Hermione it all felt completely different. The six months they had spent dancing around each other had been the only times that she had been able to put a smile on her face. With Lucius in Azkaban she should have been able to let it go, but something was holding her back. She couldn't let go of what little emotion she still held for Lucius. She knew Hermione was the one who was making her smile now. She just couldn't understand how she had managed to do it in such a short amount of time when Lucius hadn't managed it in all the time they had been together.


	6. Welcoming's

House: Gryffindor

Challenge: Write about a character from a house you haven't previously written about, A missing moment in canon.

AN: This is no where near my best but this challenge and I didn't get along very well.

-{x}-

Welcoming's

I watched silently as everyone in front of me moved nervously forwards. They heard their name called out and stumbled their way to the front of the hall. A patched up hat was placed on their heads and it would announce their house. Sometimes it was instantaneous, other times we would all wait with bated breath until it spoke again. The Great Hall was a large place and I could see the four house tables from where I was stood. They were already full of returning students and I wondered how it could be possible to fit anyone else on the benches. The ceiling was the exact replica of the night sky I had seen just moments before as we made our way across the lake towards Hogwarts. I watched as the older students cheered whenever someone was placed in their house, I wondered where I would be placed. I knew that a distant relative of mine was part of the Black family and they had all been Slytherin's but Mum had been a Hufflepuff and Dad a Ravenclaw. '_I could go anywhere'_ That was what Dad had said.

As I looked back towards the front of the hall, I caught the eye of a rather irritated looking professor. Looking down quickly at my feet I sighed and shifted around on the spot. I wondered how long it would take the hat to decide where to place me. The last two people in front of me were called up and I smiled, It would be my turn soon. As I heard my name called out, I stepped forwards quickly. An elderly looking woman directed me to the small stool in the centre and I sat down. She placed the sorting hat on my head and stepped back. I heard a voice whispering in my ear and stifled a gasp. The hat had barely been on my head for thirty seconds before it shouted out "Hufflepuff!" It was removed from my head and I rushed forwards to join my fellow Hufflepuffs. I took a seat and shook hands with another student, looking around the Great Hall I took in what would be my home for the next 7 years; I was enjoying being here already. It was just like Mum and Dad had said, busy and full of a variety of people. I looked up abruptly as I heard another name called out,

"Potter, Harry." The whole room fell silent as the sorting hat was placed on his head, I glanced around and saw some Slytherin students whispering between themselves. I looked back down my table and smiled at a blonde haired girl sat opposite me,

"That's him!" She whispered and I nodded in response, looking back to the young boy with the sorting hat still on his head. "I'm Hannah," The blonde haired girl smiled at me broadly and I smiled back, "I'm Ernie."


End file.
